172 Sharjah bus stops to be air-conditioned

Sharjah – The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Sharjah is to furnish 172 bus stops across Sharjah with air conditioners to provide relief to passengers waiting for a bus in the heat.

According to a senior official, all the public bus stations as far as the eastern coasts of the emirate will be covered.

Abdulaziz Al Jarwan, Director for Transport Affairs at RTA Sharjah, the process of equipping the assigned bus stations with ACs will be completed in five phases.

“The first of these shall start after three months in September at busy bus stations on the Arouba, King Faisal, and Ittihad roads in Sharjah.”

All the industrial areas of the emirate will be covered in the second stage of the project, he added: “Bus stations in residential areas will also be air-conditioned, following which the eastern coast cities will be covered.”

Al Jarwan said they are working on the design for the time being. “AC models will be selected on the bases of the one that best suits the heavy duty and long hours of operation under the sun.”

Elaborating, he said over 77,500 passengers are using the RTA Sharjah public buses and taxis on a daily basis. “These include 16,000 on city routes, 16,500 on intercity routes, and 45,000 in city cabs.”

This huge number of passengers is projected to go up in the coming years, he pointed out. “More passengers opt for public transport to save time, money and effort.”